Transactions on the Runes protocol on the Bitcoin network experienced a significant drop in December, falling well below the highs reached during its more dominant months earlier in 2024. After the Runes launch, the protocol consistently had the highest bandwidth on the Bitcoin network. On April 23, Runes had over 753,000 transactions, eclipsing the Ordinals protocol, BRC-20s, and Bitcoin (BTC). The record accounted for more than 81% of all transactions in the Bitcoin blockchain.
Runes’ momentum continued through the start of May but tanked in the middle of the month. The protocol then saw a big increase in transactions through most of June, but dropped by over 88% toward the end of the month. Runes recorded over 15 million transactions in the first four months. In July, the Runes protocol also saw a decline in popularity. The protocol’s share of transactions fell under 9% on average, showing a decrease in investor interest in Bitcoin-based non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Despite this, the protocol showed potential for longevity after recording more than 15 million transactions in its first four months. By August, the protocol had generated over $160 million in fees, reaching 15.6 million NFT transactions. The protocol saw a brief resurgence during the month, with Aug. 23 recording 255,000 transactions. Then, the Runes protocol’s transactions dropped again in September and have struggled to reach their previous highs throughout the last quarter of 2024.
Runes recorded less than 10% Bitcoin transactions share throughout December. In December, Runes’ transaction share in Bitcoin continued to decline. The protocol had a transaction share of less than 10% throughout the month, except for Christmas Day when the protocol had a 19.9% share in Bitcoin transactions.
The decline in interest in Bitcoin Runes comes amid a broader decrease in interest in NFTs. In 2024, NFTs had a seven-month downturn before briefly recovering in November and December. NFTs hit their lowest point in September when monthly sales volumes for digital collectibles dropped below $300 million for the first time since 2021.